Is The Web Spell Broken?

[Pickaxe]

A DC 15 STR check isn't that hard to make. Many monsters - especially Large or larger ones - have high STR and can easily score a 20, 25, or even higher on a STR check.

Of course, it's a 20 Str check and a 25 Escape Artist check. At low levels, those are difficult. The point about larger creatures generally being stronger is an important one, and such creatures generally have more HD and therefore higher saves. A room full of Medium humanoids will be stuck fast, but a pack of trolls will only be deterred for a few rounds at most.

--Axe

 

[provik]

Good for the Goose...

I have had enemies used this spell tactically. It is great for blocking escapes or reducing the size of a battlefield. In other words, most effects are balanced if they work against the PC's and for the PC's the equally.

Web is one such beastie. All it takes is a little bit of charm, confusion or tactical pensiveness to hem the party in against a ranged foe or to catch helpless party members in the middle of its effect. Or worse, a key-placed illusion to get the arcane caster to throw it on a vulnerable party member.

And the cover against ranged attacks has been used to great effect by some of my players (they intentionally webbed near themselves to reduce ranged attacks against them).

 

[Caliban]

Why bother using Web and Fireball when you can just Fireball to start with?

Pinotage

Web gives them a -2 on Reflex saves due to the -4 Dex penalty for being entangled. They take an extra 2d4 points of fire damage from the burning webs.

Another tactic is to web them, and then fireball them when they are close to getting out. This can give you a few rounds to do other things, like cast Slow or Ray of Enfeeblement on them...

 

[Plane Sailing]

If you thought Web is overpowered, what about Entangle? Twice the area effect of Web and 1 level lower.

Save against entangle and you can run out of the area of effect.

 

[Li Shenron]

One extra question: if the webbed character has total cover vs enemies 20ft away and he's in the centre of the Web (or anyway more than 20ft away from the edge on your side), how does this interact with the Fireball? Does the web block the burst? Does it force the Fireball to detonate at the edge of the Web or not?

 

[WampusCat43]

This spell is a royal pain to deal with. I simplified it as follows:

If you make the Reflex save at the time of the casting, you may move up to half your move speed (10'-15') on your turn to avoid the web (it may not be enough). Otherwise, you're stuck in the web.

Once stuck, you may spend your turn fighting the web to move, again, half your move speed (10'-15'). You may not attack or cast (other simple actions, like concentrating on an existing spell or singing/talking, are OK). If you are able to escape the web and still have at least 5' of movement left, you may attack/cast.

 

[Lasher Dragon]

One extra question: if the webbed character has total cover vs enemies 20ft away and he's in the centre of the Web (or anyway more than 20ft away from the edge on your side), how does this interact with the Fireball? Does the web block the burst? Does it force the Fireball to detonate at the edge of the Web or not?

That's the thing, you have to have 20 feet of web for total cover, anything less and it's just cover... so by those rules we kinda see it this way: when you cast a fireball into a web, it goes in until it reaches that point at which there is full cover (20 feet in, basically the center of the web) and detonates. Maybe we are doing this wrong, I don't know. I still contend that for a 2nd level spell, it is extremely powerful. All this talk about limited circumstances - any dungeon consists of probably 90-95% web-viable space. I don't know if it's by RAW, but a forest also makes sense to be able to be webbed. A street/alley in a town works as well. The only place web is NOT viable is in open country, or a room with a celing higher than 40 feet and walls farther apart than 40 feet - although I suppose if you wanted to you could widen the spell... which would be wholly ridiculous. Another thing - it states specifically that a web burns 5 square feet in a round. We houseruled that to mean it burns 5 square feet, then any 5-foot squares the flames are touching ignite. That way seems more "realistic". Yeah yeah I know, it's not supposed to be technically "realistic", but if we didn't houserule that, one 40' diameter web would burn for a loooooong time. I don't know if any of you have set fire to a spiderweb, but I have, and it does not burn slowly... more like flash paper.

 

[Sejs]

If you thought Web is overpowered, what about Entangle? Twice the area effect of Web and 1 level lower.

Entangle requires there to be appropriate plants present in the area of effect. Cast it in a cave, dungeon hallway, or on a city street and it does nada.

 

[Lasher Dragon]

From the SRD:
Entangle
Transmutation
Level: Drd 1, Plant 1, Rgr 1
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Long (400 ft. + 40 ft./level)
Area: Plants in a 40-ft.-radius spread
Duration: 1 min./level (D)
Saving Throw: Reflex partial; see text
Spell Resistance: No
Grasses, weeds, bushes, and even trees wrap, twist, and entwine about creatures in the area or those that enter the area, holding them fast and causing them to become entangled. The creature can break free and move half its normal speed by using a full-round action to make a DC 20 Strength check or a DC 20 Escape Artist check. A creature that succeeds on a Reflex save is not entangled but can still move at only half speed through the area. Each round on your turn, the plants once again attempt to entangle all creatures that have avoided or escaped entanglement.
Note: The effects of the spell may be altered somewhat, based on the nature of the entangling plants.

The emphasis is on the places where entangle falls far short of web.

 

[MerakSpielman]

Is the web spell broken?

Not without a DC 20 strength check it isn't!